Premium catering and bar supplier Mitchell & Cooper is so impressed with City Link's ground-breaking new ability to track parcels in near real time that it has switched all its deliveries over to the express parcel carrier.
The MyCityLInk service, launched earlier this year, enables City Link customers to see exactly where their parcels are in near real time from any computer anywhere in the world that is connected to the internet.
This enables them to pro-actively update or answer questions from their own customers about the progress of deliveries, confident in the knowledge that the information is accurate and up-to-date.
By using MyCityLink, market leader Mitchell & Cooper believes it is now offering a superior level of service to its 1,000 plus UK based customers from Land's End to John O'Groats, as well as streamlining its customer service operation.
Mitchell & Cooper, founded in 1879, designs and produces a wide range of catering and bar supplies under its Bonzer® brand, from the iconic Bonzer® Can Openers to Food Portioners, Cup Dispensers to Spirit Measures and much more. It sends out around 300 consignments a week to businesses and institutions across the UK.
"In our line of work, delivering our products to schools, hospitals, prisons, restaurants and hotels, deliveries can be very critical and urgent," said Darren Babb, Commercial Manager, Mitchell & Cooper. "If a school's can opener needs replacing and they have to open eight catering size tins of beans for lunch, it's no good if the parcel arrives after service.
"MyCityLink is absolutely fantastic. Whereas before, with other carriers, if there was a delivery that had gone awry, it could involve numerous phone calls, faxes and emails to sort out a Proof of Delivery.
"MyCityLink enables us to do all that ourselves, at the touch of a button. If one of our customers phones up with an enquiry, our customer service staff can see where the parcel is, there and then, and tell them.
"In these economic times, any improvements I can make on cost of sale by reducing the amount of time our staff are spending on the phone sorting out delivery problems and increasing the time they are pro-actively selling our products, is good.
"And to do that whilst at the same time improving service to our customers and saving money on our carriage bill, is even better.
"I am absolutely over the moon. We are a premium brand, our customers expect a premium service and through City Link we are continuing to improve this premium service."
Duncan Faithfull, Sales & Marketing Director, City Link, said: "We are delighted to be winning new business because of our enhanced technology.
"MyCityLInk underlines City Link's position at the forefront of the express delivery sector and truly sets it apart from the competition.
"However, MyCityLink is just the beginning. We will continue to further develop our service offering to ensure that we deliver a customer experience which is unmatched in the industry."
City Link has invested heavily in technology over the past two years. As well as MyCityLink, developed at a cost of £1/4 million, City Link has introduced electronic Trailer Trackers on its curtain-sided fleet, and has installed VanCam security cameras on delivery vans.